Irish ‘Romeo & Juliet’ Law

The Irish Independent carried a fascinating story this week in which a case re-asserted that teenage boys can continue to be prosecuted for underage sex in Ireland while teen girls are exempt.

The Independent states that: He was charged with having underage sex with the girl under the Sexual Offences Act 2006. Section five of this act states that a girl under the age of 17 will not be guilty of an offence by reason only of her engaging in an act of sexual intercourse. When he took a challenge to his prosecution in the High Court, he claimed he was being discriminated against on grounds of gender. His lawyers argued that his constitutional and European Convention rights had been breached. The High Court dismissed the challenge. Upholding that decision yesterday, the Supreme Court also awarded the costs of taking the case against the State and the DPP. The court unanimously ruled the law was constitutional, because lawmakers could take account of the danger of pregnancy for teenage girls in such cases.